Analyst Ranks College Football’s 10 Hardest Schedules In 2019

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 27: A general view is seen during the College Football Sydney Cup match between Stanford University (Stanford Cardinal) and Rice University (Rice Owls) at Allianz Stadium on August 27, 2017 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

As the 2018 college football bowl season winds to a close, analysts are already looking ahead to 2019 to see who the contenders will be. An early look at the 2019 schedule gives a pretty good picture of who has the toughest path to victory next season.

247Sports analyst Brad Crawford did a breakdown of next year’s season and ranked the 10 toughest schedules. Suffice it to say, Stanford, Michigan, South Carolina, USC, and Auburn fans are not going to be happy.

Here is his ranking:

10. Duke

9. UCLA

8. Florida

7. Maryland

6. Texas A&M

5. Michigan

4. Auburn

3. USC

2. South Carolina

1. Stanford

The Cardinals’ non-conference schedule is already one of the toughest in the nation, with Big Ten West Division winner Northwestern, CFP-bound Notre Dame, and AAC champions UCF all on the list. Of Stanford’s nine PAC-12 opponents, only two finished with fewer than five wins: Oregon State and UCLA.

As for the conference breakdown of the list, four teams are from the SEC, three are from the PAC-12, two are from the Big Ten, and one is from the ACC. No Big 12 Conference or Group of 5 teams were represented on the list.

Michigan, South Carolina, and Duke have the hardest schedules of their respective conferences.